Kansas City Blog Dance

Elegant costumes, classical music, and tight buns. These are just a few of the things that might come to your mind when you hear the word ‘ballet.’ The Great Gatsby at KC Ballet subverts those expectations completely. The ensemble is dressed in a huge variety of dazzling costumes, from flapper dresses to suits and ties to soldier uniforms. The music in this show is so diverse and beautiful, and even includes a song with lyrics by iconic songwriter Irving Berlin.

I went to this show having read the book and seen the musical of The Great Gatsby and was accompanied by my friend who barely knew the story at all. She came out of the show with an understanding of the story, and I came out with not only a twofold respect for ballet, but with a fresh new version of the story in my mind. While The Great Gatsby at KC Ballet does not take any large creative liberties or divert from the original plot, it is performed so well that it does not need to. 

Chiaroscuro, meaning light to dark, is often used as an artistic technique to describe dramatic contrasts. As I watched the Owen/Cox Dance Group’s open rehearsal for the piece Chiaroscuro, I was taken through the four movements and felt as if I was in the swirl of light and darkness through the dancers’ portrayals of emotions from bitterness to ecstasy. I was very grateful to have the opportunity to be in the room and experience one part of this production come to life. 

Chiaroscuro will be performed March 27 and 28 at 8:00 p.m., and March 29 at 2:00 p.m. at City Stage Theater in Union Station. The Owen/Cox Dance Group is partnering with the Grammy-nominated St. Petersburg String Quartet for the music of the piece. The piece they are performing to is Dmitri Shostakovich's String Quartet No. 8, which consists of four movements, in celebration of the 125th anniversary of the composer's birth. 

Before the show started, I saw many young girls running around the lobby in their Snow White dresses and costumes, all giddy and excited to see a princess story performed by ballerinas. I also saw many older, elegant and well-dressed adults who were ready to see the classic story put into the art form of dance. Kansas City Ballet’s performance of Snow White was exactly that: a classic, family-friendly tale that enchanted all members of the audience. 

Devon Carny’s stunning adaptation of this classic ballet tells a tale of two lovers in an enchanted world that is trying to tear them apart.  

The Kansas City Symphony took Tchaikovsky's music and amplified it through the entire building. The orchestration was graceful enough by itself but with the KC Ballet company's gorgeous performance the whole thing was an amazing experience.   

Kansas City Ballet brings Swan Lake to the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts from Oct. 17-26 for the first time since 2020. I attended the show on opening night, to watch the iconic ballet come to life. Kansas City Ballet (KCB) artistic director, Devon Carney, choreographed the ballet with the KCB dancers based on the original choreography done by Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov in the late 1800s. I have been doing ballet for the last 14 years, and as a ballet dancer, I can confidently say that this performance was phenomenally put together and a must-see for all ages of artistic performance lovers. 

Swan Lake follows the story of Prince Siegfried, who, upon hunting, falls in love with Odette, a swan by day and human by night, as she is under the sorcerer Von Rothbart's spell. Later, Siegfried attends a grand ball where he must choose a princess to be his bride. He only wants Odette, who is stuck on the lake as a swan. However, the mysterious Odile, who reminds Seigfried of Odette, arrives at the ball. After being transfixed by the wrong girl, chaos erupts between Siegfried, Von Rathbart and Odette.